A London company that was charged for leasing a Richmond Row space to an illegal marijuana dispensary has made a deal to house a proposed cannabis retail store in the neighbouring storefront.

The province previously vowed to exclude blackmarket pot shops from joining the legal industry if they didn’t shut down when recreational pot was legalized in the fall, but no mention was made about landlords who didn’t comply, says one cannabis lawyer.

Ranjit Basra submitted an application to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), the province’s pot regulator, to open a recreational marijuana retailer called J. London at 691 Richmond St., suite 5, the commission disclosed Tuesday.

The ground-floor unit is beside a now-vacant space that was home to the London Relief Centre, an illegal pot shop that served anyone older than 19, until it closed in December following repeated police raids, one of which resulted in a charge against its landlord.

Police raided the Relief Centre three times since it opened in defiance of the law in September 2017. The business also was robbed at least twice before a gate was placed over the entrance after the most recent crackdown on Dec. 13, 2018.

The dispensary’s landlord, an Ontario numbered company, was charged with permitting a premise to be used for the sale or distribution of cannabis following a joint operation by the OPP and London police on Nov. 20, 2018.

The charge against the numbered company was withdrawn on Feb. 4, court records show.

Patrick Ambrogio is the director of the company, according to corporate records.

“Obviously, if you answer a question falsely that would definitely be a problem,” said Fraser, who advises the cannabis industry.

The commission would look into whether there are any possible connections between the operators of the illegal London dispensary and the lottery winner, Fraser said.

“I’m assuming that the AGCO is satisfied that this lottery winner has nothing to do with the prior operators,” she said.

The AGCO held a lottery in January to select 25 winners to apply for the first 25 cannabis retail licences. Seven of those licences are allocated for the west region, an area stretching from Windsor to Waterloo to Niagara.

Three of the west region’s winners now have applied to open stores in London.

Canopy Growth, a licensed marijuana producer based in Smiths Falls, announced a pending deal last month with Quebec-based Couche-Tard, operator of 15,000 variety stores worldwide under the Circle K and other banners, to enter a licence agreement with an Ontario numbered company planning to open an outlet in a commercial plaza at 1025 Wellington Rd.

In January, Christopher Comrie applied to the commission to open one in the former Oarhouse restaurant at 666 Wonderland Rd. near London’s Oakridge neighbourhood.

Retailers that fail to open by April 1 will be fined $12,500, while those still not in business by the end of that month get dinged $50,000.

Construction was underway Tuesday on the proposed Richmond Row retail store that was previously occupied by a tanning salon. The space is 167 square metres, according to an online listing.

Objections to the proposed store can be made to the AGCO until March 19, but the complaints must be related to public health and safety, restricting access to minors or preventing illegal activity.

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